"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Readers will recall that the attorney for accused sex offender Kaitlyn Hunt called her client a “model citizen.” And readers may also recall the evidence that the term “model citizen” apparently has a very flexible definition for “Free Kate” supporters:

Bad causes attract bad people and yesterday I called attention to Gary M. Herndon of Charlotte, N.C., as exemplifying “The #FreeKate Criminal Caucus.” The aforesaid Herndon took exception to that characterization, claiming that the charges were dropped, yadda, yadda, yadda, and threatening legal action against me.

OK, would it surprise you to learn that Gary M. Herndon of Charlotte, N.C., was arrested at least four times between August 2009 and December 2011? The mug shots for each arrest:

There seems to be some error in the online records at Mugshots.com, as there are two different mug shots for arrests that the site records as occuring on the same day. But at any rate, so far as we know, Gary M. Herndon of Charlotte, N.C., was entirely innocent of all the crimes with which he was charged. Perhaps there was a conspiracy to frame him for stalking, trespassing, etc., and it may be that, except for this unfortunate two-year streak of arrests, Gary M. Herndon of Charlotte, N.C., has lived an entirely law-abiding life of unimpeachable rectitude.

UPDATE: Readers will notice that Gary M. Herndon has decided that he has the right to comment at this blog, and that if any of his comments are deleted, this proves . . . he’s right!

Also, if I call attention to the arrest record of Gary M. Herndon, he implies, this proves that I am in the throes of an “obsession.”

Uh, no.

When I began covering the Kaitlyn Hunt saga May 22, this story was all over the news; the Hunt family actually got interviewed on the Today show. With the able assistance of many others, I steadily dismantled the lies and sophistry from which liberals had assembled the bogus narrative that portrayed Kaitlyn Hunt as a victim. And those who had jumped aboard the “Free Kate” bandwagon then either (a) recognized that they had been bamboozled, or (b) rationalized the situation to defend their emotional investment in the cause.

OK, fine — huddle inside the fact-free No Logic Allowed Zone where the Hunt family and their sympathizers tell you that their sweet little Kate did nothing wrong and that their attempt to overturn Florida’s-age of-consent law is not dangerous. Yet the “Free Kate” crowd is not content with that, and so we see people like Gary M. Herndon engaging in online attacks against Matthew Mason, Jeanette Runyon and others who have been part of the pushback against the Hunt family’s misleading victimhood narrative.

Notice that Gary M. Herndon, who was accused of trespassing and stalking, seems to think that the proprietors of Web sites do not have the right to decide who can participate in the discussion of the comments field. This involves a concept I’ve called “troll rights” — that people who hate you have the right to use your own bandwidth to stalk and harass you. (Please see my April 7 post, “Bill Schmalfeldt, Violentacrez, Barrett Brown and the Scourge of ‘Troll Rights’.”)

A characteristic attribute of the online behavior of sociopathic personalities is that when their anti-social behaviors lead to conflict, the trolls react by demonizing anyone who objects to their disruptive and/or abusive behaviors. Unwilling (or perhaps unable) to accept the validity of criticism, or to tolerate the conflict as a simple disagreement, they cannot walk away from the fight. Incapable of coping with shame, they lash out at their critics, accusing them of bad motives (mala fides) that serve to justify the campaign of vengeance aimed at the person they feel has wronged them.

Live long enough and pay attention, and this pattern becomes sadly familiar. Ancient wisdom is vindicated: Fools despise instruction, the wicked hate virtue, and liars hate the truth.

Another ancient truth: Hit the freaking tip jar. Sometimes I feel guilty getting paid to have this much fun with trolls. But not too guilty.

Comments

Why not just spell it out and stop hiding behind a key board.”ghey brigade”. And if I was that way I wouldn’t be after Kates Dad , “Here kitty kitty kittty”

Becca Lower

Anyone interested enough can click on the link at the top of this thread, like I did.

Ivory

Just the facts? Please.
All you mainly do in your post is call everyone names who doesn’t fall in line with the Hunt’s characterization of the events and then go on to explain why everyone should have pity for KH.

It is not hateful to think that parents just might not want their 14 year old child to be experimented on sexually by an 18 year old. And yes – that’s what KH was doing as her own mother has stated that she just thought they were experimenting because KH had always dated boys.
KH was warned not once but on three different occasions to stop her relationship with the child. She chose not to do so after those warnings.
There was nothing innocent about what KH was doing – she took advantage of and preyed on a 14 year old who was likely starry-eyed that a popular senior would take interest in her.

I don’t think anyone would have wanted or would want KH to spend 15 years in jail – and that is not likely to happen to her as a first time offender. But, yes, I do think that she should be in the system and watched by police and probation officers for a long time.
Her online presence which can be easily found proves that even after her arrest – as late as May 16 – she was still reaching out and contacting the child.

It’s curious to me that you claim to have such a scientific ability to spot lying and liars yet you have bought every lie put out by the Hunt’s.
Seems your BS detector needs some major refining.

If you really are an advocate for LGBT community then perhaps you should read up on what happened to true LGBT advocates on the Treasure Coast for not taking up the cause of KH. They have been demonized and vilified and basically forced to resign their positions in gay advocacy groups like PFLAG.
Why?
Because they dared say that the KH case is NOT about gay rights but about the law and that parents do have a right to protect their own children.
KH has done a great disservice to the LGBT community as a whole and many recognize the fleecing for what it is.

That’s just for starters…..Gary.

Finally – the compassion for a victim and in this case – the victim’s family should always be uppermost in our society. And yes – parents do have not only a right – but a duty to protect and shield their children from what they deem harmful.

You are so obtuse you can’t figure what a member of the ghey bridade would be?

No wonder you have been caught stalking by the authorities, you aren’t very good at it.

Katie K

I would just like to thank you for your coverage on this situation, & debunking all of the lies the Hunt family have spread with the intention to gain support from the public. I will say that I originally read about Kate on one of my favorite websites, Buzzfeed, & immediately “liked” the Stop The Hate page, thinking I was supporting something I believed in, without fully researching the truth. Sometimes it’s hard to realize that regardless of how much you may think you agree with something, you are always only hearing one of two sides to every story. I’m not sure what prompted me to use google magic today, but I am sure glad I did. After discovering the Support Honesty page, I was almost mortified at my own actions, that for one second I was a part of complete & total BS, for lack of better words. The more I read, the more disgusted I become, & I truly hope that sooner or later, everyone is aware enough to inform themselves of what this actually is & is not. It is not about a family who hates gay people, or thinks their child was brainwashed by an innocent love struck lesbian, or that Kate is actually made out of golden cookies & homeless puppies.. it is about a 14 year old child who is actually the victim. I truly hope that justice will be served to these ignorant psychopaths, & eventually this won’t be what the other family has to wake up to every single day.